Men In Black 3 (2012)

4/5

Men In Black 3 is the sequel that nobody asked for and that everybody was surprised by. It offers an origin story for both leads that brings complexity and depth to the characters, making them more authentic and infinitely more heartwarming. You wouldn't expect that from a simple sci-fi action comedy--and you wouldn't expect for it to be done so expertly--but it gives us all that on top of everything else that makes the series so watchable. Past all the superfluous and silly special effects, past all the precisely-delivered one-liners, past all the action and excitement, the movie leaves an indelible mark in your memory because it plucks the heartstrings so powerfully. Honestly, seeing that finale just made my heart drop a little. How can you not feel something when you discover what turned Josh Brolin into Tommy Lee Jones? That small, perfect moment at the end is what makes Men In Black 3 the best of the series. And what makes me want to see it again and again.

IMDb link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1409024/

Seven Pounds (2008)

2/5

Seven Pounds follows a remorseful Ben Thomas (Will Smith) who is aching to sacrifice himself to donate certain life-altering gifts to good, kind-hearted people like Rosario Dawson. But why is he doing this and what kind of gifts is he giving away? All that will be explained in the final five minutes of the film, but I'm sure you'll realize what's going on in the first five minutes. While the movie advertises itself as a mystery, it was obvious from the beginning what his backstory and motivations were. And every pseudo-revelation from that point on just insults your intelligence that much more. While the movie prides itself on its emotional impact (remember all that running in the rain and yelling on phones from the trailer?), the situations, conversations, and interactions were all so contrived and forced that any emotions the actors infused into their characters felt flat and fake. It wasn't real; it was overwrought melodrama.

The best part about the movie was the music, something everyone agreed on. The rest, to put it plainly, sucked. It was all so weird and uncomfortable, as if everything was a manipulation instead of something genuine or honest. I found myself unable to trust the movie and any message it was trying to get across. It's a shame, because I really wanted to like Seven Pounds. I wanted it to be at least as good as The Pursuit of Happyness, if not better. But it was far worse. And the title takes a Shakespearean reference and bastardizes it beyond recognition by the writer's obvious fetish for the number seven. How awful.

IMDb link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0814314/

Hancock (2008)

3/5

Peter Berg's Hancock is a mildly humorous action comedy that was unable to live up to my rather simple expectations. When I saw all the names associated with its creation, I guess I just assumed it would be better than it was. But despite Peter Berg's direction, the action was vapid and uninspired. Despite Will Smith and Jason Bateman's involvement, the comedy was unremarkable; there was just enough humor to keep it afloat and no more. The trailer had every predictable plot point and every good joke. Surprisingly, however, the movie threw us a complete curve ball about 2/3 of the way in, with an absolutely preposterous turn of events that I was not the biggest fan of. This concoction was a plot twist I could not foresee from watching the trailer. I was also taken aback when I saw some good drama, and some cleverness in answering a few questions I had pertaining to said ludicrous plot twist. And, for the first time, Charlize Theron actually played a character who was supposed to be hot! Which was wonderful. All in all, though, a quickly forgettable movie with just enough good moments to barely hold your interest throughout.

IMDb link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0448157/

Bad Boys (1995)

3/5

Michael Bay's Bad Boys tries to be many things and doesn't always succeed. The plot centers around cops Will Smith and Martin Lawrence as they attempt to regain a large amount of stolen heroin while simultaneously protecting Tea Leoni, a witness to a related murder. One part of the story involves a cheesy gimmick wherein Lawrence must pretend he's Smith, but it only serves to confuse the plot and add unfunny attempts at jokes. The dialogue was very poorly written. They attempted realistic back-and-forth arguing as you'd see in It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia or Knocked Up. But it wasn't funny. Which just made it annoying. Only about half the action scenes are truly exciting; for the rest, we're just watching stuff happen. As the camera rotates around us. The technical aspects are pretty uninspired and unimpressive. The worst part is that it takes a long time to really get into the meat of the story, the funny jokes, and the thrilling action. You have to put up with half of the movie before you're really rewarded in any way. So, watch it at your own risk. Just don't expect too much out of it.

IMDb link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0112442/

I Am Legend (2007)

4/5

I Am Legend is an exciting and entertaining thrill ride. The plot follows Robert Neville, the last human on earth after a viral epidemic wiped out most of the world and turned everyone else into monsters, on his quest to find the cure and save mankind. The first two thirds are exquisite, nail-biting tension, but in the final third it starts careening downhill. For me, this was not a problem. Mostly because I knew the ending before sitting down to watch it. I also knew that it disappointed many people. So when I actually did see it, I wasn't expecting any better--it didn't leave as bad a taste in my mouth as it did in others'.

I liked much of the filmmaking. The movie slowly reveals how the world devolved, it gradually allows the audience to experience the settings--the time and place--on their own terms. The pacing was excellent; it did a great job of describing how this nightmarish scenario all began while simultaneously maintaining an eerie sense of mood, a permeating unease that I absolutely relished. A lot of the dialogue and actions--of the humans and the monsters--seemed bizarre at first. And instead of explaining the "odd" aspects of their behavior, the movie lets the viewer generate the answers for themselves, especially concerning the monsters' social structure.

There were a couple of flaws. It seemed like a lot of scenes were unnecessary. Bob Marley's music, the voice-over radio transmissions, and Shrek the movie were all overused and repetitive to the point of irritation. The CGI was surprisingly seamless on the whole, which made it all the more shocking when you could tell which parts were CGI and which weren't (some galloping deer, the breaking glass, etc.). Also, the ending was a bit of a letdown, even knowing it would be a letdown. Still, I thoroughly enjoyed this movie and recommend it if you were already considering watching it.

IMDb link: http://imdb.com/title/tt0480249/

Ali (2001)

4/5

I knew nothing about Muhammad Ali's life story going in, so this movie was a very eye-opening experience for me. I like how the movie wasn't simply a boxing movie, but really dug into all aspects of his character, including the social and political realms he affected. His motto, "float like a butterfly, sting like a bee," could describe this movie as well. It flows naturally from scene to scene buoyantly and then strikes the viewer hard when the fight scenes occur. Technically, this movie matches Mann's other works. The crisp and beautiful cinematography by Lubezki is exceptional in this piece, bringing a visceral realism to the fights and ethereal fluidity to the rest. The music was spot-on, although sometimes a bit too prevalent. The acting by all parties was outstanding, although I think Smith's acting in the title role was slightly too weak to carry the entire picture (although quite strong overall). But it was really fun to hear Ali trash-talk.

It did have quite a few problems as well, I thought. It was too long. It meandered in meaningless areas that I never really cared for (although more knowledgeable fans might have found them interesting) and unexplained subplots. A firm sense of time and place was never really achieved. There were no dates or locations to inform the audience; the only markers were social events like Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr.'s deaths. The problem with the amazing cinematography was that Mann got too enamored of it, unable to cut parts out to keep the piece tight. The editing was competent for the most part, but failed to impress. Other than these minor squabbles, though, I really liked the film.

IMDb link: http://imdb.com/title/tt0248667/

The Pursuit of Happyness (2006)

4/5

The Pursuit of Happyness follows the real-life story of Chris Gardner, a father who loves his son above all else and will do anything to stay with him. And wow, Will Smith gives a tour-de-force performance. His acting gives so much depth and complexity to his character because he's not a perfect guy who just got caught in a bad situation; sometimes he makes mistakes, he gets angry, he loses control. All of this makes the character real and sympathetic (unlike Russell Crowe in Cinderella Man). There are three scenes of extraordinary power in this film, two by Will Smith and one by Thandie Newton, and they are worth the price of admission alone.

The cinematography is nothing to write home about except for one shot, the first time Will Smith walks into the brokerage firm. The editing and directing were also relatively mediocre at best. The music was a bit over the top for me, but effective nonetheless. While never comedic, most of the movie had a sort of tongue-in-cheek feel, the kind of humor Will Smith specializes in. While it was really enjoyable to watch, it sort of took away from the painful situation of homelessness by making it seem not so bad. Also, the voice-over narration was absolutely terrible. They should've completely stripped the entire movie of narration. Or at the very least taken out the "This part of my life is called..."

IMDb link: http://imdb.com/title/tt0454921/